To date, thin composite architectural wall panels have been manufactured in multi-step processes which often involve both sheet manufacturers and panel fabricators. First, a thin composite sheet is manufactured by laminating metal skins to a plastic core. (An example of such a composite sheet is the “ALUCOBOND” material produced by Alusuisse Group, Ltd., Zurich, Switzerland.) Next, these sheets are typically shipped to a fabricator where they are cut to size and routed so as to return the edges around the perimeter. Typically, extrusions are fabricated and applied to the panel perimeter to create panel joinery. Also, stiffeners are typically applied in the field (i.e., the major flattened portion) of the panel to reduce the bowing of the thin panel under load. All of this tends to represent rather cumbersome and costly processes. (“Thin composite panel” and “thin composite architectural panel” are widely recognized as essentially interchangeable terms of art that relate to a specific genre of architectural panels, configured substantially as described above, whereby a thickness dimension as measured between opposing faces in the field of the panel can generally be between about 4 mm and about 6 mm, though a greater range of thicknesses, such as less than about 15 mm or less than about 10 mm are feasible.)
Another currently available architectural panel product is embodied by a thicker composite foam panel which is made from metal skins sandwiching an insulated foam core. Such panels are widely known; examples thereof are disclosed, for instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,282 to Brow et al. Attendant manufacturing processes tend to be quicker and can involve lower manufacturing costs than with the conventional thin composite processes described above, but here manufacturing limitations do exist. An evolving need has thus been recognized in connection with imparting to the manufacture of thin composite panels a measure of ease and convenience typically enjoyed in connection with the manufacture of thicker composite panels.
In view of the foregoing, there are specific aspects of conventional thin composite panels and their manufacture which appear to be ripe for improvement. One such aspect involves the schemes of interconnection between thin composite panels (i.e., the available connection arrangement at an interface between one thin composite panel and another). Historically, extruded interconnections of complex design have been utilized in such contexts, and such extruded interconnections have most often lent themselves to a manufacturing process completely separate from the manufacture of the panels themselves. Thus, a tremendous need has been recognized in connection with eradicating the associated inefficiencies in manufacture and possibly wasteful investment in separate materials.
In the realm of providing a foam or polymeric (e.g., polyurethane) core to be sandwiched between laminates, conventional approaches have tended to emphasize poured-in-place processes that can often provide significant investments of time and resources to the process of manufacturing thin composite panels. A need has thus also been recognized in connection with providing a more efficient manner of establishing a foam or polymeric core in thin composite panels.
Finally, history has seen various efforts made towards imparting distinct coloring or other supplementary visual features to a panel reveal. (A “reveal”, as generally known in the art, may be defined as a recessed region in the face of an architectural panel, and which may be disposed solely in one panel or defined between two panels, that itself normally lends a significant visual enhancement to a panel or building wall even without coloring or other supplementary visual features.) To date, it has generally been the case that only rudimentary methods have been contemplated for the purpose, such as, for example, the application of colored tape strips to a rear portion of the reveal. Accordingly, a need has been recognized in connection with providing a more effective and permanent method for imparting coloring or other supplementary visual features to a reveal.